HIRSCH: CERAMIC ARTIST
by Joan K. Yanni
Richard Hirsch is a ceramic artist whose work combines antiquity with contemporary art. His sculptures present an awareness of man's ongoing interaction with tools and materials. He deals with the timelessness and universality of shape and form, the connections between past and present.
All during his career Hirsch has been interested in archeology and the antique. Objects of every age can be seen on the shelves of his 19th-century farmhouse in Churchville. The bronze tripod vessels of Ancient China's Shang Dynasty and artifacts from 16th-century Japanese tea ceremonies rest next to Pre-Columbian clay vessels and contemporary ceramics.
In his own work, Hirsch combines primitive and contemporary, Eastern and Western traditions. To this end, he often does raku firing, which offers the appearance of age even in new work. He says he is not a raku artist, but uses the technique because its qualities are consistent with his artistic goals.
MAG has two of Hirsch's large, vertical works in its collection, both on display in the contemporary gallery: Pedestal Bowl with Weapon Artifact #9, and Altar Bowl with Weapon Artifact #21.
Each work is made up of a number of pieces: the first has three, the second, four. In Pedestal, the elongated base holds a rough, almost unworked vessel or bowl, on which is balanced a blade shape. Altar Bowl is built of a shorter pedestal or base, a round altar which resembles metal and which, in turn, is a platform for a large vessel with balanced blade. Both sculptures reflect the artist's interest in vessels and tools as ritualistic rather than utilitarian objects.
MAG's works are earthenware. To create the works, Hirsch modeled each piece, then low fired it in an electric kiln. After firing, he painted some parts (the long pedestal of the first sculpture, for example) with acrylic lacquer. Other parts, such as the aqua altar bowl, he glazed and fired several times until he obtained the color and effect he desired. Raku, used for the bowl in the Pedestal piece, is the third technique used in the sculptures.
The raku technique comes from Japan and Zen Buddhism, where raku tea bowls were used in the Japanese tea ceremony as early as the 16th century. Since the bowls are typically formed from a coarse clay and the "accidental effects" from the firing give them a natural charm, raku fits into the Buddhist emphasis on a simple, unaffected way of living.
The raku process is dramatic and unpredictable. The body of the piece to be created is generally made of specially formulated clay, which is bisqued—fired to harden the body—then glazed. It is then placed in a kiln and fired until the glaze begins to melt. Just before melting occurs, the piece is quickly removed from the kiln with tongs and placed in a container or pit filled with sawdust, straw or leaves—any material that will smother the work and prevent oxidation. This final step is usually done outdoors because of the smoke it creates.
The speed of the work, together with the smoke and flame, make raku firing a fascinating "happening." The procedure gives raku glazes a smoky, accidental quality, often unusual and varied. Oxides, stains and colorants used in raku decoration tend to develop fantastic color combinations. Hirsch's colors are largely those of worn stone, aged metal or the aqua of unearthed artifacts, and his finishes range from glossy to matte. His pieces are a mixture of control and spontaneity.
Hirsch's work is well known in Japan as well as in the western world. His tea bowls are displayed in Japanese museums and shown with those of raku masters, a rare honor for a Westerner. Along with artist Paul Souldner, he was invited by the Japanese government to demonstrate "American Raku." Among those observing the demonstration was the reigning master of the fifteen-generation raku heritage. In recent years a teaching stint in Israel provided the inspiration for Hirsch to change his palette to the pale, natural colors of the desert environment.
Hirsch, born in New York City, is a graduate of RIT with an MFA in ceramics; he also holds a BS in art education from SUNY at New Paltz. He is professor of ceramics and ceramic sculpture at RIT's School for American Crafts and was an associate professor of ceramics at Boston University, where he taught a program in artisanry. His work is in the permanent collections of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, the American Crafts Museum, the Ohi Museum in Japan, the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria in British Columbia, and others. His art has been featured in publications such as The Craft and Art of Clay by Susan Peterson, and Raku, A Practical Approach by Steven Branfman.
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